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Springtime for local golf fans means the arrival of the game’s elder statesmen for the Toshiba Classic in Newport Beach. Among other notables, two-time Toshiba winner (and three-time U.S. Open champ!) Hale Irwin will go for the gold and also be the featured speaker at the annual Toshiba Classic “Breakfast with a Champion” presented by the Allergan Foundation on March 13. Start time is 7 a.m., so set your alarm very early and support some great charities by attending.

The tournament itself has generated over $14 million for charity in the last fourteen years, and the breakfast is an occasion to get up close and personal with some of the game’s greatest competitors — past legends attending include Tom Kite, Lee Trevino and Gary Player. The breakfast also serves as an opportunity to award two top Orange County students with a $10K scholarship from the Toshiba Classic Scholarship Fund.

Those of you who love the game and relish the opportunity to support a good cause would do well to break bread at the Newport Beach Marrriott Hotel & Spa with the estimable Mr. Irwin. Ticket information can be found at this web address.

I confess to having always had a general distaste for practice over competition, whether that meant playing endless piano scales or shooting free throws after hours — without the heat and pressure of the hunt, why bother? Consider me newly reformed: with the arrival of Taylormade’s TR3 Speed Stik in my life last week, I find myself out in the backyard constantly, and discovering something new almost every day. It’s a little longer and heavier than a regular driver, so, first off, it’s a great way to warm up the big muscles before going out to play.

Another of its key features is a little sonic feedback gizmo that indicates when you are starting to speed up your swing. If you’re doing what you ought to, that whistling sound should sing its song right as you make contact with the ball. Also, there’s a swing speed meter in the bottom of the TR3 that will indicate just how much clubhead speed you’re generating, from 60 to 140 mph. Again, the device is weighted so that you can use the feedback to not only increase that number, but also develop a more consistent rhythm and tempo. Then, when you pick up your normal clubs, you’ll be amazed at how much more fluid you feel. And the results are almost instantaneous.

Lastly, but perhaps most importantly, the 46″ length and 650 gram weight means you will perforce make a flatter swing, which in most cases will cure a persistent slice (the result of an outside/in swing plane). And Taylormade has also printed arrows down the length of the shaft to make sure you’re aligned correctly. Better accuracy ensues, as one’s habit of fading the ball, well, fades away!

Take it from a tech-skeptic who hates the monotony of hitting dead golf balls on the driving range — The TR3 Speed Stik is the best feedback money can buy. Its two-piece construction means you can squirrel it away in your luggage or golf bag, and then withdraw it from its scabbard with flair, breathing fire into the hearts of your competitors. Take their money and send 10% to your favorite charity in my name. 😉

The savvy modern golfer leaves nothing to chance these days — every last dimple on the ball is examined under a microscope, clubs are routinely custom-fitted and now even the lowly wooden golf tee is getting a second look. Enter Evolve Golf and their new breed Epoch performance golf tee, a “sustainable” way to get your drives airborne without sacrificing a stand of trees. I’d say right about now is a good time to get into chopstick futures. The wooden golf tee is cheaper, of course, but tends to break, litter up the tee-box and is harder to decimate when those tractor-mowers grind them under. Epoch only cuts down plastic trees to make their tees out of (that would be called a “joke,” my friends).

More importantly, Epoch tees balance your ball on radius posts that span the width of a golf ball dimple, meaning less friction, more distance and even improved accuracy — no matter your swing speed. The proof is in the pudding — 127 global tour wins later (43 on the PGA Tour), you’d better believe that the technology is not smoke and mirrors, but a definable edge that the better players recognized and adopted.

And here’s another good reason to try Evolve’s Epoch tees: if you go to their website and enter the make and model of your driver, the company will recommend which of the “depth of insertion” marks to use to optimize the ball flight for your particular weapon of choice. Again, you may think such devilish details are too small to sweat, but I’ve read many contemporary instruction books that urge one to tee the ball up a little higher for those big-daddy, 450cc drivers. Epoch takes out the guesswork and you take home the trophy. So save a tree and shave some strokes off your card at the same time. Wooden tees are so yesterday.….

It’s easy to take for granted the things you love and forget to acknowledge — from friends to songs to, yup, golf courses! I have been visiting Malibu Country Club for the better part of twenty years or so, but usually in a charity tournament, and rarely playing my own ball. When I returned recently, to play a leisurely weekday round, my eyes and soul were agog at the austere beauty of the location — and how cannily the holes are routed through this vertiginous stretch of the Santa Monica Mountains.

Some might quibble with a blind look or two, or the ubiquity of elevated tees and/or greens, but the 1980 William Bell design is a felicitous balance of generous looks from the tee boxes and daunting ones at the green complexes. Add to that the fact that grabby kikuya grass comprises some 90% of the turf out here and, folks, you got yourself all the golf course you can handle — especially from the back tees, where the par 3 fifth is a healthy 236 yard poke to the dance-floor action. Nice work if you can hit it….

Originally developed by Japanese Buddhist monks in the late 1970s, the course has matured nicely — a good half-dozen approach shots here can find you hamstrung by a hundred year old tree, and a couple of deftly placed water hazards add drama and interest to the affair. There are some shortish par fours which demand you file away the 7,000cc driver and get out a club that demands less testosterone and more neocortical judgment.

GM Danny Meherin is a genial giant at 6′ 5″ tall, and has been around here so long he knows every blade of grass by name. His staff is friendly and attentive, the kitchen pumps out great buffet fare for tournaments and, hands down, this is the most dramatic and picturesque piece of golf real estate in the greater Los Angeles area. But don’t let your mind start drifting into some transcendent calm — not when you’re looking at an uphill shot to a sloping green from 220 out. Bring your warrior self and a few extra balls, just in case!

Readers of this column — and of Golfweek Magazine — know how highly regarded Rustic Canyon Golf Course is, but fewer may know that a few 3-woods up the highway in Ojai stands another classic design: Soule Park Golf Course. Little coincidence that the architects of both layouts are Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner, whose respect for the game’s tradition and for the natural contours of this fine planet lead them to craft some subtle and eminently playable golf courses.

This dynamic duo completely redesigned the original Billy Bell layout, respecting the old routing as much as possible, and bringing into play the beautiful, oak-studded and creek-crossed terrain. It plays a healthy 6,730 yards from the back, but has tees for all manner of players going forward. Greens are perpetually in excellent shape, and the operation is helmed by Rustic’s very own Buddy Kalencki, one of the true gentlemen in the business and a thorough professional (PGA teaching pro as well!).

Recently ranked by Golfweek as #20 in the top 100 municipal courses in the U.S.A., Soule Park proves that good land and enlightened management can offer quality golf at affordable rates. Other daily fees try to snag $65 to $100 per round, while Soule Park can be played during the week for $31 bucks or under! But don’t let the price lead you to think you’ll be grumbling about another muni goat-track — this course has great shot values and the kind of imaginative design that you wouldn’t tire of playing once a week. That’s the true test of a well thought-out design. Call 805-646-5633 for tee times.

Yes, you are correct, sir: Cancun itself is played. Too many gross gringos, too many down-at-heel flopjoints, too, too, too. The good news? An hour south of the airport — on the so-dubbed Riviera Maya — is an area jumping with luxury and amenities worthy of high praise. Atop the list is the Fairmont Mayakoba, ten minutes from the charming bustle of Playa del Carmen, but on a hideaway 700-foot stretch of virgin Caribbean white-sand beach.

The hotel sits on 50 acres of green-themed swamps, lagoons and canals and is flanked by a stunning Greg Norman designed 18 holes — El Camalon — that recently hosted a PGA event. And yes, Martha, even the golf course is Audubon International-certified, meaning care was taken to make this the eco-friendliest of the hulking resorts that dot the coastline here. Mangrove forests weave their way through the grounds and are traversed by wooden walkways.

Did I say walkways? Why walk when the hotel provides bicycles to ride from the main building to your room, from the pool to the beach and even to the Willow Stream Spa, a 16,000 sq. ft. marvel that is a deft combination of understated serenity and elegance. The golf course is challenging to be sure, as everywhere you look there are fairway-bordering canals that urge one to make shots and not just blast the ball to and fro. In case you need adjustment, there’s a Jim McLean Golf Academy on the premises that will fix what ails you.

You could just stay behind the gates and enjoy the high-end food and amenities, or venture forth to the ruins at Tulum or Chichen Itza. A rental car might be a good idea. Despite all the horror stories about renting and driving in Mexico, I had a great experience with Avis at the Cancun Airport. They were straightforward and friendly and offered a very competitive rate. But the Fairmont Mayakoba is the reason to pack: it ranks in my personal top three golf resorts on Earth. Bienvenidos, amigos….

More and more golfers are toting handheld GPS devices nowadays, or those who ride in carts might even find one dangling from the roof. For those who don’t depend on satellites, the Bushnell Tour V2 Slope Edition is the only way to go short of having a caddie with a notebook and local knowledge up the wazootie. Aim the device, press a button, bounce the beam off the flagstick (or tree or Some Dude Putting on the green) and less than a second later you have the distance without having to rely on the yardage number on the sprinkler head.

The V2 has three targeting modes, depending on what you’re aiming at. The PinSeeker mode captures the flagstick itself without inadvertently calculating background distances. Scan mode enables one to pan across the landscape as the LCD continuously updates yardages to trees, bunkers, etc. And Slope mode provides a “compensated distance” that figures in the degree of incline or decline. All they need to add is a digital anemometer and you’d have every variable covered! Maybe that’s next….

This objet d’art is sleekly designed, fits nicely in the palm of your hand and is accurate to within a yard. Despite the laser, it is safe for use and doesn’t require a reflective prism. Now if I could only learn to swing the club — the V2 gives me one less excuse for missing greens. Dangitall! Ya just cain’t win……

Back in the day, golfers used to train by hoisting huge schooners of lager and chasing skirts of any length — Arnold Palmer was the original Tiger Woods, there were just no tabloids interested in exposing Arnie’s other army. But since the Tiger era, more and more tour golfers have personal trainers, and we are danged lucky to have one of the best in our midst: Michigan-bred David Daglow, fresh from working with pro boxers and college volleyball stars, and ready to transform your body from a raggedy bag of flab into a lean, mean golf-ball striking machine.

DD has just taken up residence at the Jewish Community Center in West Hills, a great facility we’ll be writing about soon. Their fitness center is fabulous, and Daglow’s arrival signals a commitment to forward-thinking when it comes to personal trainers. I started working with him a month or so ago to address a hip injury (which started to improve immediately!), then moved on to his core training regimen geared specifically to the muscles involved in a golf swing, though such training can benefit you whether you are a serious athlete or a non-competing civilian who wants to improve posture, strength and flexibility. Who doesn’t??

Versus your everyday 24 Hour Fitness gym rat, Dave is a National Association of Sports Medicine certified trainer, and is as passionate as he is informed about the neuro-muscular innards we all depend on for the sporting life. As for golf — since he plays the game himself — his studied approach enhances range of motion, fluidity and core strength to promote a swing that not only promises better distance and control, but which will protect you from the slings and arrows that such extreme torque inflicts on the human body.

I couldn’t recommend David Daglow any more enthusiastically, and I have borne an irrational fear of trainers since I zoomed past middle-age a couple minutes ago! He can be reached through the JCC at Milken or by phone at 616-437-7187. My guarantee: Your clubhead speed will take a quantum leap, and strokes will fall from your scorecard like raindrops. Go get ’em, tiger!

We can all mostly agree there’s little good to have come from the pillaging and burning of the world economy recently, except that prices for the good life have fallen enough to make membership in a swank country club a feasible prospect. In Southern California, it doesn’t get much better than Spanish Hills CC, set like a diamond in the green hills above Camarillo, affording one high-end golf, tennis and attendant amenities without sending you to the soup kitchen for supper.

Speaking of the great game of golf, the Robert Cupp-designed layout here is what a well-made course is all about: challenging from the tips for accomplished players, yet accommodating to all levels of skill from the appropriate tee. There are some spectacularly scenic looks, some interesting elevation changes and an overall variety to the holes that sears an image into your mind’s eye well after the round is done. Conditions are ever pristine, and lessons and clinics and great practice facilities ensure that your game is kept in fine fettle. It’s the kind of course you wouldn’t tire of playing month in and month out.

But it’s the after-golf ambience that matters most in such a setting, and Spanish Hills more than lives up to its reputation as an un-starchy, collegial atmosphere for male beer-bonding, tea on the terrace (with endless views of the mountainous horizon) and convivial chat. Unpretentiousness with a high level of service is quite a neat trick to pull off — but Spanish Hills does it with aplomb. P.S., for you tennis types, there are five championship courts good enough for the likes of the Bryan Twins, the world’s #1 men’s doubles team. That should about say it all. Add a lavish swimming pool and fitness center and you may never find cause to leave the premises. Now’s the time to make your move! For membership info try amilton@spanishhillscc.com. Tell ’em you’re a Friend of Dave.

As a writer for various national golf magazines, I have had the good fortune to play some of the country’s most fabled courses, from Pebble Beach to Oakland Hills, Cypress Pointe to Riviera, and points beyond. I am admittedly spoiled. So imagine my amazement when someone told me that some of the nation’s best golf was hidden away in Somis, California, somewhere in the rural hinterlands between Camarillo and Ventura. I’ll believe it when I see it, I said snootily.

Well, hush my mouth. Saticoy Country Club turns out to be my favorite course in Southern California, hands down, and ranks among my top ten anywhere. People gush about LACC and Bel-Air and such, and those courses aren’t to be disparaged, but dollar-for-dollar, a membership at the William F. Bell-designed Saticoy CC could be the best tee-to-green value in these here United States. Conditioning is always superb, the greens run like inmates during a prison break and the design itself is an exacting test of one’s shotmaking abilities. It’s tough as nails without being unfair. All this in an area better known for strawberries and avocados than for high-end golf action!

Always the best-kept secret among golf cognoscenti, under the stewardship of affable general manager Tom Szwedzinski, Saticoy has only gotten better. He is one of the most capable and experienced golf-brains on the West Coast, and serves his members with aplomb and a fine sense of humor (you need both in this sometimes high-pressure environment). Thus, everything from the food to the pro shop to course maintenance meet the highest standards. And the better news is they have openings for new members: I suggest you jump at the chance. Call (805)485-4956 and ask for the guy with the unpronounceable last name. Tom will be happy to fill you in…..

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Who is David Weiss?

A Detroit native, David Weiss fled Motown for Los Angeles in 1978 and began to write for Daily Variety and the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, primarily as a music critic with a focus on jazz.

His own music career started soon thereafter, with the surrealistic funk band Was (Not Was), then various gigs as a composer and producer, working with Bob Dylan and Rickie Lee Jones among others.

In a parallel universe, Weiss has been filing golf and travel stories for T&L Golf, Golfweek and The New York Times and is a regular contributor to NPR's "All Things Considered" program, doing stories on music and all things cultural.